Now what do I do?
by Azulastalker
Summary: Riley has fallen in love with Ian's girlfriend. How will this affect the treasure hunt? Rated T for sexual references and swearing. Don't like, don't read!
1. Chapter 1

Riley knew the second he saw her that she was THE ONE. The one that he would spend the rest of his life with. She was smart and funny and oh so beautiful. They got along like old friends and everything seemed perfect. Even her name was perfect, Valerie. She seemed so perfect there just HAD to be something wrong with her, some tiny flaw. And he knew what that flaw was: she was absolutely in love with Ian Howe. Her and Ian were dating and he could tell by the way they looked at each other that they were both in love. It was that true love that you can spot a mile away. His heart hurt every time he saw them together, laughing and kissing, just staring into each other's eyes as they tried to figure out where this clue for the treasure led them.

They had all decided to meet at Ian's huge house for long hours of clue solving. Valerie would sometimes cook for them. She would cook 'the food of her family' which was usually some dish from wherever she was from. It fed a lot and was perfect for the 8 of them. He remembered the first time he ate something she cooked and how it tasted like heaven. He remembered how he fantasized about them being married and her cooking amazing dishes for him all the time. He usually fantasized about her and hoped that no one, especially Ian, noticed.

He remembered the first time he had seen her. They had decided to meet at Ian's house that day and after they had been invited in, she had walked down the stairs towards them, smiling, and his heart flew. He knew he was head-over-heels in love with her and he knew he could never have her because she was Ian's and Ian would never let her go just like Riley never would if he had her.

Riley knew he would never get her the second he saw her and Ian 'making love'. They had gone into Ian's office to research something and didn't come back down. Eventually he was sent up to ask them what was taking so long and he had opened the door just a little bit and he had seen them. They looked almost fully clothed, but they must have been slightly undressed because those movements they were making were unmistakable. Ian had Valerie lying on his desk as he took her. Ian glanced at Riley for the briefest of seconds and had immediately grabbed her breasts as a sign of 'she's mine'. Riley had closed the door as silently as he had opened and went back downstairs to tell the others that they were working hard and hadn't found anything.

Riley also knew that he would never get Valerie when him, Ben, and Ian were all at lunch in a restaurant somewhere. Ian had pulled out a box and shown them what was inside. He told them he was going to propose to Valerie once they found the treasure. Riley felt his heart drop and shatter into a million pieces, but kept up his smile. Ben congratulated Ian and went on saying how they were the perfect couple. Ian talked about how he thought so too and just hoped she'd say yes. Riley half-listened and tried not to let his disappointment show.

The next day they were all headed to the Arctic Circle, Valerie included, to find The Charlotte.


	2. Chapter 2

_"You stupid bitch!"_

_Riley heard this yell then a scream. He rushed to the room he heard it coming from, throwing the door open. He saw Valerie hunched in a corner, sobbing with her hands over her face, and Ian standing angry above her. Ian turned his head at the sound of the door being thrown open._

_"Get out of here, Riley! This doesn't concern you!" Ian shouted._

_"It does if you're hurting her!" Riley said and punched Ian unconscious._

_Valerie hugged him in relief, tears still coming down her face and a bright red hand print on her cheek. Riley hugged her back._

_"Thank you so much, Riley." She said._

_"No problem."_

"What's no problem?" Riley jerked out of his fantasy and back onto the private airplane Ian had gotten them to the Arctic Circle. He realized he said the last line in his fantasy out loud and saw Valerie looking at him questioningly.

"Umm it was no problem finding out where The Charlotte was." He quickly covered.

"Oh. You're so smart, Riley." She smiled and walked over to where Ian was sitting.

Riley blushed at her compliment. He watched her walk over to Ian and peck him on the lips before sitting down next to him. He sighed. He wanted Valerie to peck him on the lips. Soon Ben came over to sit next to Riley.

"So you have everything ready?" He asked about the device to find The Charlotte.

"Yup. Just need to turn it on once we land." Riley replied.

Ben paused before asking, "You're a little bit obsessed with her aren't you?"

Riley looked at him surprised. "Umm . . . "

"Relax. I won't tell Ian. Just . . . try not to do anything stupid. Ian IS in love with her and paying the bills. I don't want to mess up finding the treasures of all treasures just because you couldn't help yourself."

Riley thought about it before reluctantly nodding.

"Good." Ben gave him a pat on the back before moving back to his seat. Riley sighed.

NTNTNTNTNT

They landed and everyone got into their cold Arctic clothing. Riley noticed Ian helping Valerie get dressed and vice versa. He bit his lip and turned his laptop on. He typed in what he needed to find The Charlotte and got into the back of one of the snow mobiles they had gotten. Ben climbed into the driver's seat. Soon Ian got into the passenger's seat and Valerie climbed in next to Riley. He allowed himself one glance at her to his right then turned back to his computer screen.

"So what's that?" Valerie asked, pointing to a dot on the screen.

"That's us." He answered, noticing her sudden closeness.

She nodded and shifted away to look out the window.

A couple of minutes passed by before Ben talked about something in history that happened that Riley didn't really care about and soon Riley's computer started beeping.

"We getting closer?" Ian asked.

"Assuming Ben's theory's correct and my tracking model's accurate, we should be getting very close. But don't go by me, I broke a shoelace this morning." Riley replied.

The snow mobile got quiet for a second. Valerie chuckled slightly and Riley nervously explained how that was a bad omen.

"Shall we turn 'round and go home?" Ian joked.

"Or we could pull over and just throw him out here." Ben replied.

Everyone but Riley laughed.

"Haha . . . ok." He said sarcastically.

"Riley, you're not missing that little windowless cubicle we found you in, are you?" Ben asked.

Riley chuckled. "No, no! Absolutely not."

Then his computer really started beeping and the snow mobile came to a stop.

"Where is it?" Valerie asked, looking out the window.

"Probably buried." Riley replied.

"We should go and look for it then." Ian said, getting out of the snow mobile.

Valerie and Riley soon followed his example and got out. Riley noticed Ian helping her down. Riley sighed again and went to go help find The Charlotte.

NTNTNTNTNT

"So why does Shaw have a gun?" Valerie casually asked Ian. They hung back slightly while everyone else went searching for the ship.

"Because he's Shaw. You know he loves his guns." Ian replied, looking through the pair of binoculars he had around his neck.

"Is that why? Or is there a little plan in that head of yours?" She asked, skeptical.

"Val, you know me. I don't kill people. I hardly hurt them. In all the times I've went out on a heist, how many times has someone ended up dead?" Ian said.

She paused for a second. "None."

"And how many times has Shaw brought along his gun?"

"All of them."

"See? It's just Shaw. Besides, he just wants to make sure nothing happens to us. His best friend and best friend's girlfriend and all of his closest friends are going on a journey into the Arctic with a couple of men he doesn't know or trust that well. He's just being cautious." Ian finished.

"Fine." She said, defeated.

"Good." He said, smirking. He gave her a quick kiss before turning to look back into his binoculars. "Looks like Gates has found something."

**Okay, this is actual lines from the movie time now. If I mess up, tell me and I will fix it. Tell me even if I make the tiniest mistake with their lines because I am a perfectionist when it comes to that. And thanks for all the support I've been getting so far!**


	3. Chapter 3

**I liked all of the hits that this story was getting and decided to upload this chapter quickly. And I also love reviews because it lets me know that you've actually read the story.**

They had managed to get most of the snow off of The Charlotte and were now resting. Valerie wasn't helping with uncovering the ship and was standing a little bit away. Riley had decided to keep her company.

"Something doesn't seem right." She said.

"What do you mean?" Riley asked.

"This is supposed to be a legendary treasure of enormous size, and it's all supposed to fit on this tiny ship? I don't think it's here." She said.

Riley thought about that. She did have a point. And he hoped it wasn't on The Charlotte. No treasure meant no proposal and he wasn't looking forward to that.

"Let's go!" Ben shouted and Valerie and Riley rushed to go down into the ship.

They went down and saw everything was covered in snow. After some exploring and Riley getting scared of a frozen corpse, they went into the cargo hold. Everyone froze at the lack of a treasure.

Feeling sympathetic at Ben's obvious disappointment, Riley quickly said, "Do you think it's in the barrels?"

They all went their separate ways, opening different barrels. Ian opened one and put his hand in it. He sniffed his glove.

"Gunpowder." He said.

Valerie looked around at the different barrels, trying to find one that stood out, when she saw Riley put a plug on a barrel and try to put it back in. She chuckled and looked to see Ben crouching down in front of something.

"I found something!" He said and brought a package out.

He unwrapped it and found a fancy box. He opened that to find a pipe.

"Do you guys know what this is?" Ben said.

"Is it a billion dollar pipe?" Riley said. Valerie chuckled.

"It's a meerschaum pipe. Ah, that's beautiful." Ian said, examining the pipe in his hands.

"Look at the intricacy of the scrollwork on the stem." Ben said, pointing to the stem of the pipe.

"Is it a million dollar pipe?" Riley asked.

"No, it's a clue." Ben said. Ian's face fell. Ben pulled the pipe apart.

"What? No, don't break it!" Riley said.

"We are one step closer to the treasure gentlemen," Ben turned to Valerie, "and lady."

"Ben, I thought you said that the treasure would be on The Charlotte." Ian said. He unconsciously put his hand on his pocket.

"No, 'The secret lies with Charlotte'. I said it could be hear." Ben said.

Ben pulled out a pocket knife and sliced his thumb. Blood showed up. Valerie flinched at it. Ben slid his thumb over the pipe then rolled it onto a piece of paper in a little book he had brought. Words showed up in blood.

"Templar symbols." Ben observed.

"The legend writ,

the stain effected,

the key in Silence undetected,

Fifty-five in iron pen,

Mr. Matlack can't offend.

It's a riddle." Ben said.

He put the book down and started talking to himself, trying to figure the riddle out. Valerie walked over to where Ian was inspecting the pipe.

"We'll find it." She told him. "Ben's too passionate about it to let it go."

He smiled at her before asking Ben, "Wait a minute, what do you mean invisible? An invisible map?"

"'The stain effected' could refer to a dye or a reagent used to bring about a certain result combined with 'the key in Silence undetected' the implication is that the effect is to make what was undetectable, detectable." Ben answered. "Unless 'the key in Silence' could be-"

"Prison." Shaw interrupted.

"Albuquerque. See, I can do it too. Snorkel." Riley said.

"It's where the map is. Like you said, 'Fifty-five in iron pen'. 'Iron pen' is a prison." Shaw explained.

"Or it could be since the primary writing medium of the time was iron gall ink, the pen is just a pen. But then why not say a pen? Why say iron pen?" Ben continued.

"Because it's a prison." Shaw muttered. Valerie patted him reassuringly on the back.

Ben went on, but Valerie had tuned him out. It was boring and they would find the treasure whether she listened or not. Ian walked over to where Ben had sat down and sat near him.

"The Declaration of Independence." Ben finished. Valerie looked up.

There was a stunned silence.

"C'mon, there's no invisible map on the back of the Declaration of Independence." Riley reasoned.

"That's clever, really. A document of that importance would ensure the map's survival. And you said there were several masons signed it, yeah?" Ian asked.

"Yeah. Nine for sure." Ben replied.

"We'll have to arrange a way to examine it." Ian said.

"This is one of the most important documents in history. They're not just gonna let us waltz in there and run chemical tests on it." Ben explained.

"Then what do you propose we do?" Ian asked.

"I don't know!" Ben said, frustrated.

After a pause, Ian said, "We could borrow it."

"Steal it? I don't think so." Ben objected.

"Ben, the Treasure of the Knights Templar is the treasures of all treasures."

"Oh, I didn't know that. Really?" Ben said sarcastically.

"Look Ben. I understand your bitterness. I really do. You've spent your entire life searching for this treasure only to have the respected historical community treat you and your family with mockery and contempt. You should be able to rub this treasure in their arrogant faces. And I want you to have the chance to do that." Ian said.

"How?" Ben said.

"We all have our areas of expertise. You don't think mine are limited to writing checks, do you? In another life . . . I arranged a number of operations of questionable legality."

Shaw came to stand next to Ian. "I'd take his word for it if I were you."

"So don't worry, I'll make all the arrangements." Ian said.

Ben looked stunned. "No." He stood up.

"I really need your help here." Ian said and he stood up also.

"Ian, I'm not gonna let you steal the Declaration of Independence!" Ben said.

Ian sighed. "Ok. From this point on, all you're going to be is a hindrance."

Ian signaled to Shaw and Shaw pulled out his gun and pointed it at Ben. Valerie went to stand next to Ian. Riley stared after her in disbelief.

"What are you gonna do? Are you gonna shoot me Shaw?" Ben said, trying to get Shaw to back off. Shaw just smirked at him. "Well you can't shoot me. There's more to the riddle. Information you don't have, I do. I'm the only one who can figure it out, and you know that."

"He's bluffing." Shaw said.

"We played poker together, Ian. You know I can't bluff." Ben said.

"Tell me what I need to know Ben, or I'll shoot your friend." Shaw pointed the gun at Riley.

"Hey!" Riley said and tried to hide behind some rope.

"Quiet, Riley! Your job's finished here." Ian said.

Riley glanced at Valerie and she looked indifferent.

"Why?" Riley shouted at her. "I thought you were nice! But you're not doing anything to stop them!"

She appeared slightly hurt at his observation. "I love Ian. And I trust him. If I went against him now I'd be looked into the barrel of a gun."

Ben suddenly lit a flare and everyone's attention went back to him.

"Look where you're standing. All that gunpowder. You shoot me, I drop this, we all go up." He said.

"What happens when the flare burns down? Tell me what I need to know, Ben." Ian said.

Ben looked between Ian and Shaw. "You need to know . . . if Shaw can catch!" Then he threw the flare.

Time seemed to stop as everyone waited for the flare to hit the ground. But it didn't. Ian caught the flare in his hand.

"Nice try though." He said, waving the flare at Ben.

"No!" Valerie shrieked as she realized Ian had put that hand into gunpowder before.

It was too late, and his hand burst into flames. He dropped the flare and the gunpowder started to burn. Flames licked up at them. Shaw started shooting them, but Ian yelled at him to get out. Ian grabbed Valerie and ran out of the room.

"Go!" He shouted at her as he pushed her towards the exit of the ship.

He turned back to the burning room and looked regretfully into Ben's eyes. A big flame shot up near Ian's face and he quickly locked and shut the door.

"Fool!" He said before running out of the ship himself.

Ian, Shaw, and Valerie ran to one of the snow mobiles while screaming at everyone else to run and get away. Shaw drove with Ian sitting next to him and Valerie in the back. The ship exploded and they stopped. Ian got out to look and Shaw looked back from his seat. Valerie didn't dare look back.

Ian got back in. "Ok, let's go. Before someone sees the smoke."

Shaw drove on and Ian looked back at Valerie.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

"No! I am NOT alright! We almost died! Ben and Riley are probably dead! And that was a rush, but that was risking our lives and that is not fun! And did you see the way Riley looked at me? He hated me! He probably died hating me! I can't believe we just did that!" She was freaking out.

Ian went to sit next to her, but she stopped him. "No! Don't try to comfort me! You said no one would get hurt! No one ever gets hurt!"

She cried into her hands. Ian looked at her sadly.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know that Ben would pull out that flare. It was a bluff, Val. We were never going to shoot them." He said.

Valerie looked at him unconvinced, but she nodded in agreement.

"Good." Ian said and turned back to the front. "Let's get the Declaration then."

**I know its boring because it's almost word for word, but that was boring for me too! It gets better, I promise. I tried to make Valerie not seem that evil. She's just into the whole stealing stuff because of the rush it gives her. So she freaked out when people actually got hurt. I'm debating on whether or not her and Ian have a big fight over this. Hmmmm . . .**


	4. Chapter 4

**Before you read the next chapter, I just wanna say thank you! This is my most visited story and I love how much you guys love it! I usually wait for a couple of notifications(story alert, favorite story, review, etc.) on this story before I post another chapter, but sometimes I just post it anyway! Once again, thank you!**

Riley was still dumbfounded over Ian's betrayal, mostly Valerie's calmness at it. She didn't look shocked at the mention of Ian's illegal activities, so he knew she had to have known about that. She had seemed so nice and trustworthy. Yet this betrayal did not lessen Riley's love for her. It did hurt that she had done nothing to help them, but he thought of her more like a victim to circumstance than Ian's partner in crime. He didn't think of her as a thief, just like a woman that's forced to be there. He didn't want to think about her not being how he had remembered her. She had to still be the same perfect Valerie he remembered. She just had to be.

NTNTNTNTNT

Valerie and Ian were in Washington D.C. now in the Watergate hotel. This was where they were going to plan the heist. Valerie and Ian were currently relaxing in their bedroom, resting after having some fun in the bed. Then Shaw opened the door.

"We need to start thinking about when soon." His sentence trailed off as he noticed their state of undress and as Valerie and Ian hurriedly used the covers to cover themselves.

"Start trying to figure it out and we'll be out soon." Ian replied. Shaw nodded and closed the door again.

"Doesn't he ever knock?" Valerie said.

"He just wants to mess with us." Ian said, smiling.

There was a pause before Valerie said, "I still don't know how you can get over Ben and Riley so fast."

"It's over and done with. There's nothing we can do."

"But I still feel responsible! No matter what, it's always our fault! It may be Ben's family's treasure, but we gave them money for the trip and Shaw pulled out the gun which made Ben pull out that flare!"

"Relax, Val. There's nothing we can do about the situation now except continue to look for the treasure. For Ben and Riley's memory."

A pause, a sigh, then, "Fine."

"That's my girl." Ian said, kissing her cheek. "Plus I know how much you love heists."

She smiled. "I want to come inside with you! I want to be there when you steal it!"

Ian seemed to ponder this for a moment before he smirked. "Okay, on one condition."

Valerie looked at him, expecting him to explain the condition when she noticed where his eyes were. He was looking at what the covers were covering. She smiled before leaning in to kiss him.

NTNTNTNTNT

It was the night of the heist and Riley was in the van while Ben went inside.

"She has to be doing this against her will. She HAS to be." Riley muttered to himself.

"Riley." Ben warned. He could hear him and Riley was starting to annoy him.

"Sorry, Ben." Then a pause. "If you see her, tell me?"

"Of course, Riley."

"And tell me if she looks unhappy."

"I will, Riley."

"Or hurt."

"Riley!"

"Ok, ok. I'll be quiet."

NTNTNTNTNT

Ian, Valerie, Shaw, Viktor, Powell, and Phil had rented a catering van to hide in. They were all dressed in black, except for Viktor, who was dressed like the driver of a catering van. Valerie was wearing black pants and a black hooded jacket with the hood pulled over her head to hide her long hair. She also wore black gloves and black high-heeled boots.

"You look beautiful." Ian said as he kissed her. Then he looked at his watch and said, "This is it!"

They swarmed around the van, getting things in place for the heist. Then the van slowed to a stop and they opened a trap door in the floor of the van.

Ian put his arm around Valerie's waist and whispered in her ear, "Stay close to me."

She nodded and followed him in. They went through the sewers and into the vents of the building. Valerie just stayed close to Ian and watched as everything was played out in perfect organization. Everyone knew what to do and when to do it. This still shocked her about the heists Ian pulled. He was so precise. She snapped out of this fascination when Shaw opened one door and standing at the other end of the hallway was none other than Ben Gates, holding the Declaration of Independence. Everyone paused for a second before Shaw drew his gun and started shooting at him. Elevator doors opened and Ben disappeared behind them.

"He's got the bloody map!" Ian said, running his hand through his hair. He turned back to the others. Valerie was in shock, she thought Ben was dead.

"Does that mean Riley's still alive?" She asked softly.

"Doesn't matter." Ian said. "He's got the map, we can't go after him. Let's go back to the hotel and try to figure out where to go next."

NTNTNTNTNT

"Ian's here. He was, uh, shooting." Ben told Riley.

"Wait, Ian? Was Valerie-?" Riley began.

"Yes. She was." Ben quickly said. "She seemed surprised."

"Was she hurt?"

"She looked fine, Riley." Ben finished getting the Declaration out of it's case.

NTNTNTNTNT

Everyone filed back into the van, a little depressed. Valerie went up ahead of Ian, with Shaw helping her up. She waited for Ian to come up.

"Got you." She heard him whisper. What?

"Viktor! Move!" Ian said, pulling himself into the van. Valerie hurried to help him before the van started to move and possibly chop Ian's legs off in the process. He made it in okay.

"That blonde lady! She has the Declaration!" Ian shouted to everyone, pointing at her.

The van stopped again in front of her and Shaw and Powell got out. They tried to grab the Declaration, but she wouldn't give it.

Finally, Ian shouted, "Just bring her!"

She was picked up and taken inside the van. Ian quickly turned to Valerie.

"Go in front with Viktor, help him drive us away safely." He said, before turning to the blonde lady.

Valerie quickly obeyed, knowing Ian knew what he was doing. Viktor glanced at her as she came up front.

"Gates is chasing us in a red van." He said in his Russian accent. "Sit down and buckle up, Ian would kill me if you got hurt."

Valerie did as she was told and checked the mirror for the van. She saw it and Riley driving it, Ben was next to him. She felt bad for a second before telling herself that Ben and Riley were chasing THEM and they needed to escape.

"Take a right!" She said, noticing the van's closeness.

Viktor quickly obeyed and turned, passing by some police cars.

"They probably want us." He joked. She smiled.

She kept her eyes on the van and only looked forward when Viktor said "Oh no". They were headed towards some construction and fast. They drove over it, bouncing along the way. Then they reached a street.

"We can lose them here." She said.

"That lady's hanging off the back door." Viktor said, motioning with his head to the back of the van.

"She still have the Declaration?"

"Yes."

"Keep her safe."

"Ok." He said before spotting a truck and quickly braking, saving the blonde lady.

A minute passed before he said, "She's gone. Gates is gone."

Valerie nodded. "Get us back to the hotel."

Then she headed back to Ian. He seemed disappointed.

"Did we lose the Declaration?" She asked.

"We never had it. It was a fake." Ian explained.

She nodded and went to comfort him on this loss.


	5. Chapter 5

**So I WAS going to work on a new Hellboy 2 fanfiction, but your wonderful reviews encouraged me to write the next chapter instead. Once again, thanks!**

Valerie, Ian, and the others had gone back to the hotel to see if they could figure out where to go based on the clue they found on The Charlotte. Ian had written the riddle on a notepad and was trying to find some kind of answer in it. Valerie was sitting next to him and looking over his shoulder at the riddle. Everyone else was either sitting on the couch across from them or standing around.

"Why is Silence capitalized?" Valerie said, pointing to the word.

"Because it's important?" Viktor guessed.

A look of realization swept across Ian's face as he said, "Because it's a name." He looked up at Powell. "Get the laptop. Look up anyone named Silence around 1776."

Powell did as he was told and discovered Silence Dogood aka Benjamin Franklin and the Silence Dogood letters.

"Where are the letters now?" Ian asked.

"At the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia." Powell answered.

"Should we leave now?" Valerie asked.

Ian looked around at his friends/partners in crime and saw their tired faces.

"No. We'll rest then leave early in the morning. We have to get there before Ben." He decided.

Everyone agreed and went into their hotel bedrooms.

NTNTNTNTNT

"Did you see a woman with them? Long dark hair? Beautiful brown eyes? About mid-thirties?" Riley questioned the newly saved Abigail.

"I . . . I don't know. I don't think so." She answered.

"Riley." Ben warned. He was getting annoyed of Riley's constant Valerie questions. "Relax, Ian will not hurt her." Then he went back to calm the panicking Abigail.

NTNTNTNTNT

"So why do you keep worrying about Riley?" Ian asked.

"I thought you wanted us to rest for tomorrow." Valerie responded. They were in their hotel bed with the lights out, ready to sleep.

"I do. It's just been bothering me." He answered.

"Jealous?" She teased. "Relax, Riley's just a friend. He doesn't know the illegal-stuff-stealing me, or he didn't. He treated me like I was innocent, like I could do no wrong. It just felt nice to feel like the police wasn't after us." She explained.

Ian seemed to like this answer and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Just remember who your boyfriend is." He told her.

She giggled. "I will." They kissed then went to sleep.

NTNTNTNTNT

Riley couldn't stop worrying about Valerie, he wouldn't. He loved her still. Darn his heart. Why did it have to love the girlfriend of the guy they were currently trying to outrun for the treasure? He had to make sure she was okay. The second he saw her. It didn't matter where or when, he just had to make sure.

Ben and Abigail were talking about something in the front of Ben's father's car driving to Philadelphia for the Silence Dogood letters. Riley was trying to fall asleep in the backseat, imagining him and Valerie living the good life after finding the treasure and Ian going to jail. He smiled.

**Sorry about the jumping around, I don't like repeating scenes that haven't changed from the movie since you already know them. This chapter was mostly filler. The big chase scene is next chapter.**


	6. Chapter 6

**You lucky ducks! Two chapters in one day!**

Valerie, Ian, and the others took two separate cars because the six of them didn't fit in one car. They left the hotel around 7 in the morning and headed to Philadelphia for the Silence Dogood letters.

"What are we looking for anyway?" Phil asked.

"Anything that can lead us closer to the treasure." Ian said.

They all got out of the cars and walked into the Franklin Institute. A little boy was rushing out saying 'Excuse me' as he pushed past everyone. He accidentally bumped into Ian and apologized. Ian looked back at him with a smile.

"It's okay." He said before turning to go into the museum. Valerie noticed his smile.

They spilt up and scattered around the room while Ian and Valerie examined the letters.

"You like kids?" Valerie asked, it was more of a statement.

"Yes, I want kids someday." He smiled at her.

"I never knew that about you." She said.

"Well we never really talked about it." He said, examining the letters.

She turned back to the letters and looked for something to lead them anywhere. Soon, the little boy came back and went to get in front of them. Ian smiled at him again, then he realized that the boy seemed to be counting something in the letters and writing something down. When the boy left, Ian followed him and Valerie followed Ian. The others noticed their sudden movement and went to catch up with them. They got outside the museum and saw the boy across the street, looking for something or someone.

"What's going on?" Shaw asked.

"I'm not sure." Ian said. He walked across the street towards the boy and everyone else followed.

"Hello." Ian said to the boy when he got over there, a smile on his face. "Who are you looking for?"

The boy seemed not to trust Ian that much and hesitated to answer. Ian pulled out a hundred dollar bill and kneeled down and handed it to the boy.

"Is this real?" The boy asked.

"Just tell me what you told my friend." Ian said.

"Just a bunch of letters. I can't remember."

"Can you remember which ones you were gonna tell him next?"

"Yeah, here. S-T-O-W." The boy handed Ian the piece of paper he had in his hand.

The boy left and Ian told Powell to get the laptop so they could find out what this means. Powell sat in the passenger seat of the car as he searched 'STOW Declaration of Independence' in Yahoo! Ian, Shaw, and Valerie looked at the laptop screen from outside the car.

"Top results: Liberty Bell in Independence Hall." Powell said as the results showed up on the laptop.

They hurried into the car and to Independence Hall. Ian, Shaw, and Valerie joined a tour to see the Liberty Bell while the others waited around outside.

"It gained a place in history on July 8, 1776 when the Liberty Bell tolled for the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence. Eventually, it was moved from it's place in Independence Hall Steeple and . . ." The tour guide went on, but Valerie stopped listening when Ian muttered "Idiot." to himself.

"Who?" Shaw asked.

"Me." Ian said.

"What?" Shaw questioned.

"It's not here. It's there." Ian said, looking at Independence Hall Steeple. "Come on."

They quickly got out of there and told the others where they were going before entering Independence Hall Steeple and going where the Liberty Bell used to hang. Ian went up first, then Valerie and Shaw. They looked around once up there, but found nothing. They continued looking, and soon Powell's voice came over the walkie talkies that Ian and Shaw were carrying.

"We're on him." They all moved to see Gates coming out of the front door down below.

"There he is." Shaw said.

Soon Riley and the blonde lady came out.

"Look! There's the others!" Valerie said.

"I got it." Shaw said and went down the ladder, talking to Viktor in his walkie talkie.

"What do we do?" Valerie said, watching the people they were chasing walk out of view.

"Wait for them to tell us where they are." Ian said, motioning to his walkie talkie.

They got down and went outside, waiting for someone to talk to them and tell them where someone was. After a while, Shaw's voice came through.

"Ian. Ian, I've got 'em. They're heading toward City Hall."

"Okay, we're on our way." Ian said.

They quickly ran toward City Hall until Shaw's voice came again.

"They're headed for the breezeway on the north side."

"We'll be right there." Ian said and they started jogging towards their destination.

They arrived just in time to see Riley pull the blonde lady away from a truck coming towards them. The light told them that it was safe to walk and they walked to the Declaration, Ian picking it up. As he examined it, Riley spoke up.

"Valerie, are you okay?" He said out of breath.

Shocked, Valerie said, "Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes." Valerie said, still shocked.

The blonde lady heard Shaw and Viktor coming closer and helped pull Riley up.

"Good." Riley said before running away with the lady.

"Leave them! Let 'em go." Ian told Shaw and Viktor. "We've got it."

They started walking back to the cars. Ian turned to Valerie.

"What was that about?"

"I . . . I don't know. It was so unexpected." Valerie said. She was still trying to figure out what it meant.

**Well hopefully that will hold you until I can get the next chapter up. Boring, I know. Scene for scene sucks and I'm changing it up as much as I can while still trying to get to the ending I want. Thanks for your support and reviews!**


	7. Chapter 7

**So for those of you wondering about that previously mentioned Hellboy 2 fanfiction(which I hope is at least one person) it's called 'Searching for love' and is a Nuada/OC because he is HOT! So check it out if you were looking for something to do while waiting for the next chapter of Now what do I do? or you wanted to check out more of my writing. Now then, on with the story!**

They made it to the cars and were now on their way back to their hotel, when Ian's phone started ringing.

"Hello?" He said. A couple of seconds passed. "Really? And what do you want me to do about it?" He had a grin on his face now. "What do I get out of this?" A pause. "Well then, Dr. Chase you have yourself a deal."

They all looked at Ian as he ended the call, wondering what it was about.

"Ben's in FBI custody. Dr. Chase, the blonde lady, wants us to get him out and get him to the intersection of Broadway and Wall Street. If we do, we get the treasure. We have to give up the Declaration and meerschaum pipe." Ian explained.

"So how are we going to do it?" Powell asked.

"I have an idea. Pull over. I need to use a payphone." Ian said.

They pulled over and found change for the payphone. Ian began his call with Shaw and Powell hanging around keeping a look out. Everyone else was still inside the car. As Ian hung up the phone, Shaw grabbed his arm to stop him from going back into the car. Powell went back inside the car.

"Listen, mate, how long are you going to keep this up?" Shaw asked.

"What up?" Ian asked.

"If you keep carrying around that ring with you, she's going to find it eventually. Then everything will be ruined. And we don't want that, do we?" Shaw explained.

"I know we're nearing the end, I can feel it." Ian said.

"But the longer this goes on, the bigger the chance she has of finding the ring." Shaw said.

"Well what do you want me to do?" Ian shouted, irritated.

Shaw let Ian calm down before continuing. "Either hide it well or propose soon." Then he got back into the car.

Ian stayed outside for a moment, thinking about his next move, until he got back into the car.

"What was that about?" Valerie asked from his right.

"Nothing. Just going over some last minute details. Let's go back to the hotel." Ian replied.

NTNTNTNTNT

"So . . . explain to me your obsession with this Valerie girl." Abigail asked. Her and Riley had stopped at a cheap motel for the night, waiting until Ben was back tomorrow morning.

"It's not an obsession." Abigail shot him a skeptical look. "Okay, it MIGHT be an obsession. I just have this feeling like she's THE ONE."

"But she's Ian's girlfriend?"

"Yeah. And he's in love with her too."

"Well then you should just confess your love and have her decide."

"No, Ben told me not to. Ian's a key element in this treasure hunt and if I go for Valerie, he'll-"

"What? Shoot you? Blow you up in a ship and leave you in the Arctic? Riley, you have nothing to lose."

"They have guns, Abigail! They will shoot me if I try!" Riley yelled.

Abigail stayed quiet, knowing he was right.

"Let's get some sleep then." She said and turned out the lights.

NTNTNTNTNT

By the time they had gotten back to the hotel, Ian had decided that Dr. Chase and Riley had too much power at the moment and told Viktor first thing in the morning to kidnap Ben's father to tip the scales in their favor. They planned what exactly they were going to do in the morning, even though Ian already had a rough idea. Everyone had something to do except Ian and Valerie. The time came to leave to set their plan in motion and everyone got into their cars. Ian and Valerie still had to wait for Viktor to get back from Pennsylvania.

"So why do I have to wait in the car with the hostage?" Valerie asked, disappointed she wasn't in the action. "Why can't I stand outside the car and look badass with Viktor?"

"Because if you play good girl then we don't have to worry about Ben and the others trying to physically harm us. They'll be too worried about hurting you." Ian explained. "So seem like the good girl. Talk and act like you're getting tired of this treasure hunt."

"Well it will be boring waiting in a car for who-knows how long." Valerie said.

Ian's cell phone rang and after a brief conversation, Ian and Valerie went to meet Viktor in front of the hotel. They climbed in, Viktor driving with Ian in the passenger seat and Valerie in the back with their duct-taped hostage. They got to the corner of Wall Street and Broadway and Ian got out to go across the street to wait for Ben. Viktor got out to wait for Ian's signal to show their hostage and Valerie took this as her cue to play the good girl.

"I'm sorry we had to do this. Are your hands okay?" She asked Ben's father.

"Not really. They're starting to lose feeling." He said.

"Sorry, but they would kill me if I even tried to loosen the bonds. My name is Valerie, by the way." She said.

"Patrick Gates." He told her. "Now what's a pretty young girl like you doing with these guys?"

"Ian, the blond one, is my boyfriend. We were dating when this whole treasure hunt started and I just got swept up in it all." She lied.

"That's a shame. Wasting your life on this stupid treasure."

"I take it you don't think it's real?"

"Not at all. After wasting 20 years of my life, I quit."

"Your son, Ben, thinks it is. I've never seen anyone so determined." Valerie said, noting in the back of her mind that Ian seemed determined to get this treasure as well.

"He's a fool, chasing after fool's gold. Look where's it's got him, stealing the Declaration of Independence and his father kidnapped."

Valerie saw their car pull up near Ian and the others and Ben get out.

"There he is now." She said.

They stayed silent watching the talk between Ian and Ben, looking for any signs it was going bad. Ben started walking away, but Ian stopped him and turned his attention to the car Valerie and Patrick were in. Valerie quickly sat as far back as she could to not be seen as Viktor opened the door. She didn't know why she did it, it was just a reflex. The door closed seconds after opening and showing who was inside. Ben and Ian continued talking and soon Ian came back to the car. He said something to Viktor and Patrick was taken out of the car. Then he turned to Valerie, still inside the car.

"We have to go inside Trinity Church." He told her, offering his hand to her. She took it and they were soon on their way into the church.

"I like pretending to be all goody-two-shoes." Valerie said, practically skipping. "People don't look at me like I'm the bad guy."

"I'm glad you like it. Now stay close to me, the treasure's close, I can feel it." Ian told her.

They went inside the church with Ben, Ian, and Valerie in front of Shaw, Phil, and Patrick by several feet. They led Patrick into one of the pews and Ben turned to Ian.

"Let him go, Ian." Ben said.

"When we find the treasure." Ian told him, nodding slightly towards Valerie so Ben got why he wanted to find the treasure so badly. Valerie didn't notice.

"No, now." Ben said forcefully. "Or you can figure out the clues for yourself." He handed the glasses to Ian. "Good luck."

"Ben, I don't think you fully appreciate the gravity of this situation." Ian said as Powell and Viktor walked in with Dr. Chase and Riley.

Ben looked at them and realized he had to go with this.

"Let's have a look at that map." Ian said and sat in a pew with Ben next to him and Valerie sitting in the pew behind them.

They took out the Declaration and, after unrolling it and flipping it to the back, Ben put on the glasses. He moved the lenses around before saying how remarkable it was and passing the glasses to Ian. Valerie snatched the glasses before Ian could grab them and put them on herself, moving the lenses like she saw Ben do.

"It says 'Parkington Lane'." She said.

"'Beneath Parkington Lane'." Ben corrected her.

She moved the lenses again and saw 'Beneath Parkington Lane'.

"Oh." She said and passed the glasses to Ian.

"But why would the map lead us here and then take us somewhere else? What's the purpose?" He asked as he looked at the map.

"Just another clue." Patrick piped up from behind them.

"Dad." Ben warned before turning back to Ian and Valerie. "No, you're right. Parkington Lane has to be around here somewhere."

"A street inside the church?" Ian said.

"Not inside. Beneath, beneath the church." Ben realized.

"Alright then. Let's go down to the basement." Ian said loudly as he stood up. The others got the hint and soon everyone was going down into the basement.

**I had to stop myself or else this chapter would've been super long. I know I sound like a broken record, but once again, thank you so much for your support and reviews and story alerts and favorites! They mean so much to me!**


	8. Chapter 8

**So I'm an idiot and instead of working on Now what do I do?, I've been starting new fanfictions. It's an idiot move on my part because I'll spread myself too thin trying to get every story updated and then every story will suck. So, I'll forget about the other stories until I finish this one. Sound good to you? Also, this chapter includes the deleted scene that can be found on the DVD and YouTube, so I suggest getting familiar with it before reading or prepare to be confused. I made this one long for you because I kept you waiting. Enjoy!**

They all scattered around the basement once down there. Valerie wandered around the room with the rest of them, searching for a way to the treasure.

"How do we get beneath the church?" Valerie asked.

"Start digging." Riley said, pointing to the ground. Valerie chuckled.

Valerie was looking at the tombstones on the wall when she heard Riley yelling about Parkington Lane and pointing at one of the tombstones.

"Ben!" Ian said as he went to check out the tombstone.

"Parkington Lane. He was a third degree master mason of the Blue Lo- Hey!" Ben moved quickly out of the way as Viktor crashed a wrench through the stone.

Shaw pulled the remaining pieces away and grabbed for the coffin. Ben, Ian, Viktor, Phil, and Powell helped him get it out. Then the bottom broke and a skeleton fell out.

"Eww." Valerie said, holding her nose to the smell of death.

"Careful no one steps in him." Powell said. "Okay, put it down."

They lowered the coffin on top of the body and everyone looked into the tomb. Shaw shined his flashlight inside.

"Who wants to go down the creepy tunnel inside the tomb first?" Riley said.

"He's right." Valerie said, backing away. "I'm not going in there. Look at all those spider webs! I'm terrified of spiders!"

"You're really going to pass up finding one of the greatest treasures of all time, because of a stupid fear?" Shaw asked her.

"It's not stupid! Did you know that some people are more afraid of spiders then they are of death?" Valerie retorted.

"See? Stupid. You're coming." Shaw said.

Valerie huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. Ian smiled at their bickering.

"Relax, Val." Ian told her, wrapping his arm around her waist. "I'll protect you." Then he turned to the others. "Right, McGregor, Viktor, you stay here and if anyone should come out without me, well . . . use your imagination." He smirked and turned to Ben. "Shall we?"

Ben went in first, then Ian, then Valerie, then Shaw and the others. Ian grabbed Valerie's hand and walked in front of her once they got in. Soon there was something collapsed in their way and Ben stopped to help people over. Ian led the way cautiously into the darkness.

"If you fall, I'm running." Valerie said.

Ian laughed. "That isn't something a good girlfriend would do."

"Well a good boyfriend wouldn't have dragged his girlfriend into a dark, creepy tunnel filled with spiders, so I guess we're even." She said back. He laughed again.

Soon Ben came back up front and the stone floor turned to wood. Ben led the way over a hole in the floor that Valerie cautiously avoided.

"What's this?" Valerie asked, pointing to some big thing in front of them.

"It's a chandelier." Ben said.

He used the torch he was holding to light the chandelier then he handed the torch to Ian, who passed it to Powell. Ben undid the rope to the chandelier and it slowly went into the center of the room. Everyone could see now that they were standing at the top of a long winding staircase, whose end could not be seen.

"I'm leaving." Valerie said as she looked down. She looked on the verge of tears. "I'm terrified of heights and falling." She started to back up, but Ian held onto her hand.

"I don't want you to get hurt running away too fast." Ian told her. "Just relax. I'll hold onto you and make sure that nothing happens to you."

"But this place has to be like two hundred years old! With all this old rotting wood!" A couple of tears were forming in her eyes.

"Listen, me and Shaw will be in front and behind you as we walk down. We'll hold onto you and make sure nothing happens to you." Ian reasoned with her.

She struggled to calm down and finally nodded. Riley looked at her sadly, having no idea why Ian was making her come when it was clearly hurting her emotionally. Everyone else had been having some conversation about the room while this was going on.

"Right, let's go. What are we waiting for?" Ian said.

Powell handed the torch to Patrick and motioned for him to go down.

"I'm not going out on that thing. 200 years of termite damage and rot." He protested.

"Dad, do what he says." Ben said.

Patrick started down the stairs with Powell, Ian, Valerie, Shaw, Ben, Riley, and Abigail behind him in that order. A stair he stepped on broke and Valerie jumped.

"Watch your step." He said before continuing.

They continued walking. Valerie was holding tightly onto both Ian and Shaw's hands with hers. Soon there was a rumbling and everyone stopped.

"Subway." Ian said. Ben nodded his head in confirmation and they continued walking.

The wood beneath Shaw's feet crumbled and he would've fallen to his death had Valerie not had such a death grip on his hand. It only increased as she struggled to keep him and herself from falling over the edge. She let go of Ian's hand to grab onto Shaw's other hand and Ian grabbed her waist as Powell held onto Ian. They all pulled and, after much struggling, got Shaw back onto solid ground. At least it was until it jerked forward and was about to fall.

"Get on the elevator!" Ian shouted at Powell. He looked at Ian like he was insane. "Jump!" Ian pushed him onto the nearby elevator.

He made it okay and motioned for the others to come on. Patrick passed the torch over before jumping himself. Then Shaw jumped and the walkway jerked again. Ian held tightly onto Valerie's waist and held her close to him as he jumped, making it just in time as the walkway tipped 90 degrees. Valerie continued to hold onto Ian tightly even after they were safely on the elevator.

"I'm sorry." Ian said to her. "Had I known that would've happened I never would've made you come."

"But, then Shaw would've died." She struggled to get out. Her eyes were tightly closed and her arms were wrapped around Ian's waist.

It seemed Ben, Riley, and Abigail had had their own problems with the falling walkway and were now farther back up the path.

"Ian, it's not worth it." Ben said.

Ian looked at the terrified Valerie and was about to agree when she interfered.

"I'd love to go back, but there is no way back!" She pointed to the walkway they had jumped off of and the missing section of wood and finally the piece of walkway that Ben had been on that collapsed as well.

"She's right. We have to go on." Shaw said.

Ben thought for a moment before saying, "Me, Riley, and Abigail will go and get help so you can get back here."

"I told McGregor and Viktor not to let anyone come back without me. We're going. Now get on the elevator." Ian said, pointing to the elevator by Ben.

Ben looked like he didn't want to, but he had to. So him, Riley, and Abigail got onto the elevator.

"Alright. Let's go down." Ian told Powell.

Powell started cracking the wheel to lower the elevator and Ben did the same a few seconds later. Valerie clung to Ian as they descended, terrified that the elevator would break and fall. The elevator did fall, but it wasn't the one Valerie was on. Ben's elevator suddenly jerked and they plummeted. Ben, Riley, and Abigail all screamed as they fell. The elevator stopped just as suddenly as it started, now hundreds of feet below Valerie, Ian, Patrick, and Powell.

"Get down there! Get down there!" Patrick said, pointing below them at his son.

Conversation was heard coming from Ben's elevator as Powell didn't move from the crank and Valerie still clung to Ian. Patrick looked around frantically for something to throw down to Ben since no one would help him. Soon a thud was heard and everyone looked below them, seeing that Riley had jumped onto the walkway from the elevator.

"That was easy." Riley said.

Ben went to hand him the Declaration when the elevator started falling again. When it stopped this time, half of it broke and Ben and Abigail were sliding off. Ben caught Abigail, but the Declaration looked like it was about to fall. Patrick looked away and started once again to look for something to throw down. With a look at Ian, Shaw went to help him. They needed Ben to find this treasure. They soon found a rope and lowered it just in time to save Ben from falling after he had dropped Abigail somewhere safe. Ben grabbed the rope and swung to where Abigail was.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I dropped you. I had to save the Declaration." Ben apologized to Abigail.

"No, don't be. I would have done the exactly the same thing to you." She told him.

"Really?" Ben asked.

"Gold digger." Valerie murmured into Ian. He chuckled.

"I would have dropped you both. Freaks." Riley said, walking over to where they were.

Powell lowered the elevator to where Ben, Abigail, and Riley were.

"Get on." Ian said, Valerie still clinging onto him. She had her eyes closed.

Riley took one look at her, the woman he loved, and nodded. He moved to get on, but Ben stopped him.

"Ian . . ." Ben pleaded.

"No, Ben. We had this discussion. There is no back. We have to go forward." Ian said.

Ben sighed in defeat and they all got on the elevator. Powell started to turn the wheel again and they went down. They reached an opening in the wall and Ben threw a rope to catch onto a post to pull them over to the side so they could go into the opening.

"Now what?" Riley said.

"This is . . . This is where it all leads." Patrick said.

Ben pulled the rope to get them closer to the side and tied it off so it would stay. He grabbed the torch from Abigail and started into the opening.

"Okay, let's go." Ben said.

They all got off of the elevator and into the room. Ian still held Valerie and helped her get off of the elevator slowly. Ben lit other torches with his torch so they could see the inside of the room. It was small, perhaps hexagonal in shape, and empty. They all walked around the room, examining the walls. Valerie detached herself from Ian and looked around. Patrick used a torch he had picked up to light the lantern in the middle.

"What is this?" Riley asked.

"So where's the treasure?" Powell asked.

Everyone looked at Ben, demanding an explanation.

"Well?" Ian asked. Valerie stood next to him.

Ben looked disappointed.

"This is it?" Riley said. "We came all this way for a dead end?" His voice rose for this sentence.

Ben sighed. "Yes."

Ian laughed in disbelief.

"There's gotta be something more."

"Riley, there's nothing more."

"Another clue, or-"

"No, there are no more clues! That's it, okay? It's over! End of the road. The treasure's gone. Moved. Taken somewhere else." Ben yelled at Riley.

"Maybe we could find it." Valerie asked quietly. She was still shaken up from before.

"You're not playing games with me, are you Ben? Hmm? You know where it is." Ian said.

"No." Ben said after a slight pause.

Ian turned to Powell and Shaw and muttered, "Okay, go." They ran back to the elevator and Ian grabbed Valerie by the arm, pulling her along so they could get on before Ben and the others could. Ian undid the rope, ignoring Ben and the others' pleas to not leave. Powell moved the elevator up so they couldn't get on.

"You can't just leave us here." Abigail reasoned.

"Yes I can. Unless Ben tells me the next clue." Ian said.

"There isn't another clue." Ben said.

"Ian, listen, why don't you come back down here and we can talk through this together?" Riley said.

Ian signaled to Shaw and Shaw drew his gun and pointed it at Riley.

"Don't speak again." Shaw said.

"Okay." Riley agreed.

"The clue. Where's the treasure?" Ian asked. "Ben?" Shaw pointed the gun at Ben. He said nothing and Shaw cocked the gun.

"The lantern." Patrick said.

"Dad . . ." Ben pleaded.

"The status quo has changed, son." Patrick said.

"Don't." Ben said.

Patrick ignored him and turned to Ian. "It's part of freemason teachings." Shaw lowered his gun. "In King Solomon's temple there was a winding staircase. It signified the journey that had to be made to find the light of truth." He pointed to the lantern. "The lantern is the clue."

"And what does it mean?" Ian asked.

"Boston. It's Boston." Ben said.

"The Old North Church is Boston, where Thomas Newton hung a lantern in the steeple, to signal Paul Revere that the British were coming. One if by lantern, two if by sea. One lantern. Under the winding staircase of the steeple, that's where we have to look."

"Thank you." Ian said and nodded at Powell to go back up.

"Wait." Valerie said and Powell stopped. "You just basically said what we just did. Staircase." She motioned to the stairs around them. "Light of truth." She pointed to the lantern. "Then you just added the whole Paul Revere thing. Which wasn't even right. The British came by sea, so it was two lanterns."

Ben and the others froze, she had figured it out. Ian, Shaw, and Powell all turned to look at them.

"So what I want to know is, why? Why would you lie?" Valerie asked.

"You're pointing guns at us and you want to know why we want you to leave?" Abigail said.

"Shove it, Blondie." Valerie said then turned to Ben. "You and Ian were friends. Then the whole thing with The Charlotte happened and you've been against us. We are after the same thing! Why do we have to be on different sides?"

"Because you tried to kill us!" Riley shouted and Shaw pointed his gun at Riley.

"Don't shoot him, Shaw. He used to be my friend. Before The Charlotte." She reached over and moved the gun so it pointed away from Riley.

A loud bang and smaller pings sounded off in a split second. Then Valerie flinched and her shirt around her shoulder turned red. Shaw's gun had accidentally gone off and bounced off of the stone walls before the bullet imbedded itself in Valerie's shoulder.

"Ow." She said and stumbled. Ian caught her.

"Oh god." Shaw said. "Ian, I'm so sorry. I must've left the gun cocked."

"Val! Val! Look at me!" Ian said, shaking her. Her eyes were closing. "Stay with me! Oh god." She had closed her eyes and they weren't opening. He turned to Powell. "Go up. We need to get her to a hospital!"

"You can't leave us here!" Patrick said.

"We don't have time to get you." Ian said, turning to Powell again. "Go!"

Then Riley jumped up onto the elevator. He pulled himself up and fully onto it.

"I'm not letting you leave with her like this. I gotta know if she's okay." Riley said.

Ian seemed about to argue, but instead went back to trying to wake Valerie. Ben and the others seemed to not want to be left behind and, after many attempts, they all made it onto the elevator.

"What are we waiting for? Go up!" Ian told Powell again and they began their ascend up and to the hospital.

**I bet you all HATE me now. Waiting for updates just to get this HUGE cliffhanger. It's reaching the end now and I'll either have two or five more chapters.**


	9. Chapter 9

**I hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing this! Italics are Valerie's memory and all of her memories are in chronological order. Enjoy my loving fans!**

Valerie felt a stinging sensation in her shoulder and the next thing she knew, her legs gave out and Ian was holding her. He was saying something and shaking her, but she couldn't hear what he said and instead gave into the comforting blackness that surrounded her.

NTNTNTNTNT

_Valerie, or Val as she liked her friends and many temporary boyfriends to call her, was in her adrenaline phase, doing whatever she wanted for the adrenaline rush it gave her. She was currently hanging out at a club with her friends, dancing to the beat of the song, when a man with shaggy blond hair approached her with a drink in his hand._

_"Can I buy you a drink?" He shouted above the music. He had a British accent._

_"Sure." She shouted back. What's the worse that could happen?_

NTNTNTNTNT

_"I wanna come!" Valerie said. She was currently in the back of a van with Ian and his little crew. They were about to pull off a heist._

_"No." Shaw said with finality._

_"I won't touch anything!" Valerie argued._

_"No." Shaw said again._

_"Please?"_

_"No!" Shaw said a final time._

_Valerie turned to Ian. "But you said I could come with you!"_

_"I said you could come with me, but I never said you could come into the building." Ian told her._

_"But I want to!"_

_"Listen, everything is very delicate and must be done precisely and accurately for it to work. You have no idea what we are doing and will probably mess us up. Please stay here so we don't get caught and go to jail." Ian explained._

_Valerie sighed. "Fine."_

_"Good." Ian turned to Viktor. "Watch her."_

_Then they left to steal some valuable painting._

NTNTNTNTNT

_Ian reached for Valerie's hand over the table._

_"Do you know what today is?" He asked her._

_"Our one year anniversary! Duh!" She said. Ian had taken her out to a fancy restaurant._

_"I can't believe our relationship started with that one question." Ian mused, stroking the back of Valerie's hand._

_"Well it never would have really started if you hadn't invited me to go on a heist with you." She smiled, remembering their first conversation in that club._

_"Here's to plenty more anniversaries and heists." He said, holding up a champagne glass._

_"Cheers." She said and they clicked glasses. At that moment, Valerie realized that this was not just a fling._

NTNTNTNTNT

_"Val. Val." Ian said, shaking Valerie awake._

_It was the middle of the night and the couple was sleeping in Valerie's apartment after making love._

_Valerie groaned, but didn't wake._

_"Val." Ian shook her harder._

_"Can't it wait until morning?" She mumbled._

_"No. Val, it's important." Ian sounded tense._

_Her eyes shot open and she sat up facing him. "Did the condom break?"_

_"No, it didn't. It's about something else."_

_"Well I'm awake, so shot." She said._

_He grabbed her hands with his and looked like he was preparing himself for something. After a couple of minutes he spoke._

_"Val, I love you." He said, looking deep into her eyes._

_Valerie seemed shocked at this. They had never said that to each other. She stayed quiet for a minute, thinking._

_"I love you too." She said finally._

_Ian smiled and Valerie did too._

NTNTNTNTNT

_"So you're letting her move in?" Shaw complained._

_"We've been together for three years, Shaw. I think we're ready to take that step. Plus the house could use some good cooking." Ian reasoned with him._

_"Relax, you two can still hang out. I won't completely steal him from you." Valerie said._

_"First the heists, then the dates, now this. I thought she was just some girl, Ian." Shaw said._

_"Well it turned out she wasn't." Ian said, looking at Valerie._

NTNTNTNTNT

_"Who's Ben Gates?" Powell asked Valerie. He was holding a newspaper and approached her while she was making them all dinner._

_"Him and his family have some type of theory that there's a huge treasure buried somewhere by the Founding Fathers." Valerie told him._

_"It says here that he's trying to find someone to fund his treasure hunt." Powell read off of the newspaper._

_"Maybe Ian should give him a call. Who knows? It might be fun." She said._

NTNTNTNTNT

_"Are you cheating on me?" Valerie asked Ian. He had been disappearing for nights lately._

_"Funny, I was just about to ask you the same question." Ian said, irritated._

_"And what's that supposed to mean?"_

_"I've heard all about you and all of your 'boyfriends'!"_

_"That was before we started dating! Plus they all lasted about a month! And we're going on four years now Ian!" Valerie yelled. "And I am not a cheater." She added as an afterthought._

_Ian paused in his anger. She had a good point, but her past . . ._

_"Now tell me where you've been disappearing to once a week!" Valerie demanded._

_"Ben." Ian stated simply. "We play poker together every Thursday night. He can't bluff at all." He smirked at the last statement._

_"Oh really?" Valerie said skeptically. She ran into their living room and grabbed the phone, dialing. Ian followed her._

_"What are you doing?" Ian asked her._

_"Making sure your story checks out." Valerie said, holding the phone up to her ear as it rang._

_Ben picked up on the other end._

_"Hello Ben. I was just wondering if Ian comes and plays poker with you every Thursday night." Valerie said._

_"Yes, he does. Why?" Ben answered, confused._

_Valerie angrily slammed the phone back on its receiver without answering. She turned to Ian._

_"I don't believe him. I think he's lying for you." Valerie argued._

_"Val, calm down. Why would I cheat on you? You're the only girlfriend I've had for this long." Ian told her._

_Valerie visibly calmed down._

_"Really?" She said softly._

_"Yes. And I love you, you know I do." Ian said, hugging her._

_"I love you too." She said and she kissed him._

NTNTNTNTNT

_"Stop being mean to Riley! Or he'll send us to a wild goose chase to Antarctica!" Valerie yelled at Shaw, Phil, Viktor, and Powell._

_"But he's the newbie. We have to tease him." Shaw told her._

_"You don't HAVE to do anything! Now leave him alone so he can figure out where the Charlotte is!" Valerie said and they dispersed, leaving Valerie and Riley alone in the living room._

_"I'm sorry about them. They can be real jackasses at times. Especially Shaw. Almost four years of knowing the guy, and he still gets on my nerves. I don't think he likes me very much." Valerie explained._

_"How could he not like YOU?" Riley asked, then seemed slightly embarrassed at asking._

_Valerie didn't notice. "Well he thinks I'll completely and totally break Ian's heart by cheating on him and/or stealing all of his money. But I would never do that to Ian, I love him too much."_

_Riley bit his lip and focused on his laptop again. "Well thanks for helping me out."_

_"No problem." Valerie said._

NTNTNTNTNT

_"I don't want to go!" Valerie argued._

_"Come on Val, it's the treasures of all treasures. You don't want to miss out on this just because it's going to be cold, do you?" Ian reasoned._

_"I guess not." She said._

_"Good." Ian turned to Ben and the others. "We can leave tomorrow, if that's not too early for you. I'll have a private jet waiting for us in the morning and equipment ready in the Arctic."_

_Ben nodded his head in agreement, then he and Riley left._

NTNTNTNTNT

_"Are you alright?" He asked._

_"No! I am NOT alright! We almost died! Ben and Riley are probably dead! And that was a rush, but that was risking our lives and that is not fun! And did you see the way Riley looked at me? He hated me! He probably died hating me! I can't believe we just did that!" She was freaking out._

_Ian went to sit next to her, but she stopped him. "No! Don't try to comfort me! You said no one would get hurt! No one ever gets hurt!"_

_She cried into her hands. Ian looked at her sadly._

_"I'm sorry. I didn't know that Ben would pull out that flare. It was a bluff, Val. We were never going to shoot them." He said._

_Valerie looked at him unconvinced, but she nodded in agreement._

NTNTNTNTNT

_"You like kids?" Valerie asked, it was more of a statement._

_"Yes, I want kids someday." He smiled at her._

_"I never knew that about you." She said._

_"Well we never really talked about it." He said, examining the letters._

NTNTNTNTNT

_Ian and Valerie arrived just in time to see Riley pull the blonde lady away from a truck coming towards them. The light told them that it was safe to walk and they walked to the Declaration, Ian picking it up. As he examined it, Riley spoke up._

_"Valerie, are you okay?" He said out of breath._

_Shocked, Valerie said, "Yes."_

_"Are you sure?"_

_"Yes." Valerie said, still shocked._

_The blonde lady heard Shaw and Viktor coming closer and helped pull Riley up._

_"Good." Riley said before running away with the lady._

NTNTNTNTNT

_"I'm sorry we had to do this. Are your hands okay?" Valerie asked Ben's father._

_"Not really. They're starting to lose feeling." He said._

_"Sorry, but they would kill me if I even tried to loosen the bonds. My name is Valerie, by the way." She said._

_"Patrick Gates." He told her. "Now what's a pretty young girl like you doing with these guys?"_

_"Ian, the blond one, is my boyfriend. We were dating when this whole treasure hunt started and I just got swept up in it all." She lied._

_"That's a shame. Wasting your life on this stupid treasure."_

_"I take it you don't think it's real?"_

_"Not at all. After wasting 20 years of my life, I quit."_

_"Your son, Ben, thinks it is. I've never seen anyone so determined." Valerie said, noting in the back of her mind that Ian seemed determined to get this treasure as well._

_"He's a fool, chasing after fool's gold. Look where's it's got him, stealing the Declaration of Independence and his father kidnapped."_

NTNTNTNTNT

_"Get on the elevator!" Ian shouted at Powell. He looked at Ian like he was insane. "Jump!" Ian pushed him onto the nearby elevator._

_He made it okay and motioned for the others to come on. Patrick passed the torch over before jumping himself. Then Shaw jumped and the walkway jerked again. Ian held tightly onto Valerie's waist and held her close to him as he jumped, making it just in time as the walkway tipped 90 degrees. Valerie continued to hold onto Ian tightly even after they were safely on the elevator._

_"I'm sorry." Ian said to her. "Had I known that would've happened I never would've made you come."_

_"But, then Shaw would've died." She struggled to get out. Her eyes were tightly closed and her arms were wrapped around Ian's waist._

NTNTNTNTNT

_"Don't shoot him, Shaw. He used to be my friend. Before The Charlotte." She reached over and moved the gun so it pointed away from Riley._

**So I know the last memories you already knew, but they were parts that stood out in Valerie's life. Sadly, the next chapter is the last one, but we find out who Valerie will choose! Ian or Riley?**


	10. Chapter 10

**This is it, the end! I appreciate you all sticking with me to the end! I hope you all like the ending.**

When Valerie opened her eyes, she could hear beeping and some people bickering. Her eyes were unfocused, so she just saw colors. She groaned when she felt the pain in her shoulder. The bickering stopped and two of the colors approached her. She realized she was laying in a bed and was dressed in a hospital gown. Her eyes slowly focused and she saw Ian standing on her left and Riley standing on her right. All of the others from the treasure hunt, minus Abigail and Patrick, were in the room also.

"How are you?" Ian asked. He took her hand in both of his and sat down in a chair next to her.

"What happened?" She asked.

"Shaw's gun went off when you moved the gun away from me." Riley explained before Ian could. "The bullet bounced off the walls and hit you in the shoulder." He pointed to her right shoulder. "We got you to a hospital and the doctors operated on you to remove the bullet."

She looked at her shoulder and found it wrapped in gauze. That explained the pain in her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Val." Shaw said. "I should've put the safety back on."

"It's not your fault, it's mine. I shouldn't have touched your gun." She said.

"Val . . ." Ian began, his one hand reached for his pocket as his other stayed holding her hand.

"I'm in love with you." Riley blurted out. Everyone's attention turned to him. "I've been in love with you since the day I met you. Since the second I SAW you! I can just tell that you're the one for me. Forget about Ian, and be with me."

Valerie seemed shocked at his confession.

"But Riley-" She began to protest.

"He got you shot! He made you come to the Arctic and then face two of your worst fears just to get you shot! He's no good for you!" Riley argued.

"Back off Riley." Ian said, standing up.

"No." Riley said forcibly. "Why do you get to have her? You've done nothing but hurt her!"

"At least I've known her for longer than a year!" Ian shouted back. This wasn't good, Ian hoped that Valerie wouldn't go back to her adrenaline phase and go to Riley because it could be fun.

"I felt something when I first saw her, did you?" Riley yelled.

Ian paused, clenching his fists. "Get out."

"Is that a no?"

"I said get out! And take Ben and the others with you! You can have the treasure just leave us alone!" Ian yelled.

"Why don't we let her decide who she wants to be with?" Riley said and everyone looked at Valerie.

She looked very upset. "Can we call a doctor or something? My shoulder really hurts." She said softly, not meeting any of their eyes.

"Of course." Ian said. He nodded to Shaw, who left the room for a doctor.

Ian sat back down next to her and took her hand again.

"Don't choose Riley. I don't know how I'll live without waking up to you." Ian said softly.

Riley sat down on the other side of Valerie.

"I can't imagine my life without seeing you everyday. After we split up in the Arctic was torture for me." Riley said at the same volume.

"Don't make it seem like we'll ever be anything more than friends." Valerie said to Riley, tears in her eyes. "That's all you were to me, a really good friend. And you think a confession like that after all that time of being on different sides will suddenly win my affections? We were just enemies! You couldn't have expected anything other than this." Riley looked sad. "I've been dating Ian for five years. I've known you for one. It's not a contest at all. I love Ian. You just succeeded in making me feel bad for choosing him. It's not going to stop my choice. Are you really that naive?"

Riley looked completely heartbroken. He looked away from her. Ian, on the other hand, smiled at her. He stroked her hand with his thumb.

"Val, I gotta ask you something." Ian reached for his pocket again.

Riley stood up and left the room, knowing what was coming, and Ben followed him out.

Ian got down on one knee and said, "Valerie Olivia Dawson, will you marry me?" He pulled out the ring box and opened it to show an engagement ring.

She was speechless for a moment, but said, "Yes. Oh yes!"

They were both smiling like crazy as Ian put the ring on her finger. He kissed her passionately and held her in his arms. The doctor and Shaw came in and they separated.

"Your shoulder is bothering you?" The doctor asked, seeming embarrassed at walking in on that.

"Yes. It has a throbbing pain to it. Could I get something for it?" Valerie told him.

"Certainly. I'll just up your morphine." He went over to a machine by her and pushed a couple of buttons. Valerie felt the pain go away.

"Just come find me if you need anything else." He said and left the room.

"I take it she said yes?" Shaw asked Ian, motioning to the ring on Valerie's finger.

"Yes she did." Ian said.

"Wait, you KNEW? And you didn't tell me?" Valerie said.

"Well I wasn't supposed to." Shaw said.

"I wasn't even supposed to propose now. I was going to do it once we found the treasure." Ian told her.

"That's why you wanted to find it so badly! And why you wanted me to come! Oh, that's so romantic!" Valerie said.

"Too bad it didn't work out." Ian said.

"What are we going to do about the treasure?" Powell asked.

"We know it's down there. We just don't know how to get to it." Ian said.

"Are we going to try to find it with Ben and the others?" Valerie asked.

Everyone stayed quiet for a moment.

"No." Ian said.

"But we need Ben to find it." Shaw said.

"We're not going to find it." Ian said. He looked at Valerie. "I have everything I could possibly want right here. There will be other jobs we can do. This one was just for fun, it never meant anything."

He stared at Valerie for a few more seconds.

"Could we call the cops on Ben and his friends?" Ian suggested.

"Riley won't last in prison." Valerie said.

"But he was stupid and tried to take you away from me. I want him to suffer for trying. I don't want him living the high life." Ian told her.

"We have no right to turn them in when they could turn us in." Valerie told him. He agreed to this.

NTNTNTNTNT

Riley exited the room and Abigail and Patrick walked up to him.

"Did you ask her?"

"Is she okay?"

"What did she say?"

Ben put his hand on Riley's shoulder and answered for him. "She's fine, and she told him it would never happen."

"I was an idiot for trying. They've been together for five years! Why did I think I ever had a chance?" Riley said.

"It's alright." Patrick said. "There are others out there that aren't taken."

"Maybe they will break up." Abigail said hopefully.

"Not anytime soon, Ian just proposed to her." Ben said.

Everyone went into an awkward silence.

"Then let's go and find that treasure, huh? It'll get your mind off things." Patrick suggested and everyone agreed.

NTNTNTNTNT

"Someone's got to go to prison, Ben." Agent Sadusky said.

Ben was quiet for a minute, unsure if he wanted to turn Ian in after just proposing to Valerie.

"Ian Howe!" Riley shouted.

"Riley-" Ben protested.

"And Shaw, and Viktor, and Phil, and Powell!" Riley shouted.

"Riley, we can't." Ben said.

"I thought they made you steal the Declaration." Sadusky said.

"But I can't turn them in. Not now. Ian just proposed to his girlfriend." Ben explained.

Sadusky was quiet for a moment.

"Someone has to go to prison." He repeated.

Ben bit his lip, thinking. Turn Ian in and ruin his happiness or go to jail himself for a very long time?

"Would I get bail?" Ben asked.

"Stealing the Declaration of Independence is a big deal, Ben. You won't get bail." Sadusky told him.

He sighed. "Then I know what I want to do."

NTNTNTNTNT

Ian and Valerie were in bliss as they talked in the hospital room. The others were still there, just not wanting to interrupt their happiness. Suddenly, FBI agents entered the room. Other agents handcuffed the others as one walked up to Ian.

"Mr. Howe?"

"Yes?"

"You're under arrest for kidnapping, attempted murder, and trespassing on government property." The agent said. He turned Ian around and handcuffed him.

"Relax, Val. Everything will be fine." Ian told her when he saw her panicked face.

She nodded as they were all led away. The machine that monitored her heart rate started beeping rapidly.

One agent came up to her. "I'm sorry, Ms. Dawson."

She was suddenly angry. "You tell RILEY POOLE that he should just GET OVER IT! He has no right ruining my life!"

The agent cautiously left the room and a nurse came in to calm her down. Valerie broke down into tears and cried into her hands.

NTNTNTNTNT

After their trial and her release from the hospital, Valerie used the money she had saved plus money she got from selling some stuff on the black market to bail Ian out of jail. Once he was out and his bank account unfrozen, Ian got the others out of jail. Valerie and Ian planned their wedding and got married eight months later. They still do heists, but are starting to slow down since Valerie found out she was pregnant.

The End

**There's the ending! I hope you liked it! It was always going to end this way, and I liked the way it ended and hoped you did too! I love you all and appreciate you sticking with me until the end! And I MAY be persuaded to make a sequel for Book of Secrets. But you have to show me how much you want it!**

**Also, if you were wishing for a Riley/OC ending then i suggest reading Shaylon Ashriel's story **Scottish By The Grace Of God (http:/ www. fanfiction. net / s / 7036547 / 1 / Scottish_By_The_Grace_Of_God) because that story will satisfy your Riley/OC needs.**  
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